I, Aki Tomoya, will not be a simp.

When Aki Tomoya opened the door and saw Kudo Sayaka, he instinctively said something like that.

Kudo Sayaka only saw Aki Tomoya's teasing look and didn't notice that there were other people inside watching her curiously.

At this moment, Kudo Sayaka wrinkled her nose slightly, raised her hand, and pretended to throw something at Aki Tomoya's face.

However, she was just bluffing. Knowing that this wouldn't scare Aki Tomoya, she steadily raised her hand and placed the object in front of him.

"Take it."

Chapter 2 Flirting? (1/?)

That seemed like a gift, and Aki Tomo thought so too.

"You're really too kind of you, you even gave me a birthday present!"

Aki Tomoya was overjoyed and solemnly accepted the gift.

Sayaka Kudo stuck out her tongue and said somewhat irritably, "I went all that way to buy this for you, and you didn't react at all. Be more sincere!"

"Lord Kudo, thank you so much for remembering my birthday today!"

Rolling his eyes, Aki Tomoya's affected tone gave Kudo Sayaka goosebumps.

You'd better be a little more arrogant and unruly!

Sayaka Kudo retorted mercilessly.

This time, it was Aki Tomoya's turn to be speechless. He replied somewhat dejectedly, "I can't pull off that arrogant and unruly attitude you're talking about..."

Sorry, being arrogant and unruly isn't his style.

That being said, what exactly does "unruly and arrogant" mean?

Reaching out to take the thing from Kudo Sayaka's hand, Aki Tomoya took a closer look and realized it was a cake.

"This is the super popular happiness cake lately, I haven't even tasted it yet!"

Sayaka Kudo stood with her hands on her hips, giving off an expression that said, "I've been good enough to you."

Of course, she didn't spend most of her time buying this cake before coming to Aki Tomoya's house; she had other things to do.

"This is more of a snack than a birthday cake!"

"If you're not going to eat it, then give it back to me. I'll enjoy it with the others!"

"It's so kind of you, Lord Kudo, to buy me a gift. If I don't eat it, I'd be letting you down!"

As they talked, they both burst out laughing.

Their playful banter almost made Aki Tomoya forget that there were other people in his house.

Unwilling to be slighted, Aki Tomoya didn't want anyone to be left out at his birthday party, because Takagi's inexplicable gaze from behind was truly terrifying.

He cautiously glanced back at Takagi, who had been secretly observing him from behind, and his lips moved as if making a questioning gesture.

Takagi, on the other hand, gave him a rather petty look.

Aki Tomoya decided to ignore this guy and quickly let Kudo Sayaka in.

"this is for you."

As soon as Sayaka Kudo entered the room, she took out a dark gray mechanical watch from her coat pocket; this was the real birthday present she had prepared.

"I have a pretty good sense of time... It wasn't expensive, was it?"

This is the first birthday gift Aki Tomoya received today: a black and gray mechanical watch, carefully selected by Kudo Sayaka.

He doesn't usually wear a watch, but he might develop that habit because of Sayaka Kudo's gift.

"I can't afford the expensive ones either, hehehe..."

Sayaka Kudo shook her head. It wasn't very expensive; it was about half of the first royalties she earned.

Her first payment for her writing was about 100,000 yen, which was a surprisingly large amount for Sayaka Kudo.

Of the 100,000 yen, she took out 50,000 yen to prepare a birthday gift for Aki Tomoya.

To be honest, whether Aki Tomoyuki would like her was something that Kudo Sayaka cared about a lot.

What editor said about the future, that her novel would flourish, is nothing compared to this.

"Thank you."

Aki Tomoya is still unaware of the watch's significance, but he accepts it with peace of mind, thinking that he hasn't made Kudo Sayaka spend any money.

He casually joked, "The more famous you become, the more valuable this watch will be."

"Pooh!"

Sayaka Kudo lightly punched Tomoya Aki's arm.

However, she still agrees with this statement because, in fact, it seems that she won't have to rely on her family in the future. At least she can earn a lot of money from the royalties of a book while in university, which will greatly reduce the burden on her family and herself.

Of course, this is all predicated on the premise that, as she told the editor, her novel's sales can steadily increase.

Aren't you going to wear it?

Kudo Sayaka saw that Aki Tomoya had simply put the watch in his pocket without wearing it on his wrist, and instead grabbed the other's hand without any hesitation and took the watch back.

Ignoring Aki Tomoya's reaction, she carefully put the watch on his wrist before clapping her hands in satisfaction.

"Watch the time!"

At this moment, Sayaka Kudo smiled slightly and offered this reminder.

Noticing the time, Aki Tomoya glanced at his wrist, where the warmth from the other person's previous movements still lingered.

He replied instinctively, "Thank you for your trouble. I'm very sensible about time!"

Starting from his second year of high school, he was already racing against time. He knew how important time management was without anyone reminding him.

Even now, he will plan out the schedule for the following month a month in advance, thinking about what to do and what needs to be done.

However, this wasn't what Kudo Sayaka wanted to remind Aki Tomoya.

As if she knew what Aki Tomoya was thinking, she pouted and said with dissatisfaction, "Why don't you give yourself some time?"

"...What do you mean by that?"

Didn't he give himself any time?

Aki Tomoya felt that everything he did revolved around himself...

Upon hearing this, Kudo Sayaka smiled helplessly: "You're just like before university... Anyway, take a good rest when you have time. If you overwork yourself, many people will feel sorry for you."

"Hmm...including you?"

"Of course!"

"Ah, I'm so touched I could die!"

"Then you should hurry up and die!"

Sayaka Kudo knows what Tomoya Aki was like in college.

Based on her understanding of this boy, she could roughly imagine how fulfilled he was.

But because of this sense of fulfillment, Kudo Sayaka felt that Aki Tomo should give himself more time to rest.

Similarly, she knew that her reminder probably wouldn't be of much use to Aki Tomo.

Because the boy next to me, as long as he can't break free, will keep doing what he wants.

In the words of those around them, they were willing to be that way.

"Don't worry about me. It's different from before. Back then, I was always on edge. Now I'm more relaxed. Actually, I'm more worried about you!"

At this moment, Aki Tomoya suddenly became serious.

It wasn't surprising that Sayaka Kudo was worried about him, because sometimes he himself would worry about the people around him.

For example, what will happen to her on her writing journey...?

However, in the end, everyone seemed to be doing quite well, so there was no need to worry so much.

Upon hearing this, Kudo Sayaka muttered a couple of things to herself, and then followed Aki Tomoya into the living room that had already been decorated.

As she stepped inside, Takagi appeared out of nowhere and whispered, "Is the flirting finally over?"

Chapter 290 Kato Megumi: I'll Never Be a Wingman! (2/?)

Appearing and disappearing unpredictably can be quite frightening.

Takagi should be thankful that Aki Tomo wasn't a sensitive person; otherwise, being startled by his back would have been a minor offense, perhaps even resulting in a punch.

"What you call flirting is untrue, or I'll beat you up!"

You can't just say anything carelessly, because it can lead to misunderstandings.

Aki Tomoya gave Takagi a warning look, telling him he'd better not talk nonsense.

The latter snorted dismissively, his eyes filled with contempt.